PS Mommy Thread-Newborn to 12 months!

[AllieLuv83]

Mara I know what you mean about hanging on this thread. I love seeing new baby pictures. It already seems like so long ago

 

[Kunzite]

Laine - too cute!!

LV - I wouldn't worry about the time in the swing. I would just be thankful that she enjoys it!! O is good in his swing for all of 15 minutes!! S is a doll!!

 

[AllieLuv83]

I realized that I forgot to add my BPF picture this week. I have the smile picture on my desktop on the computer and I SMILE every time I see it. I just can't help it!!!

little man is going to be 5 months in 2 weeks I can't believe it!

 

[somethingshiny]

LV~ JT lived in his swing and bouncy seat. That kid needed to be jostled, swayed, swung, bounced every minute of the day. He's fine. I wouldn't worry about it. Think of all the countries that baby lives tied onto mom's back. Babies just love to be moving. Such a sweet pic of S. She's gorgeous!!

Allie~ C looks so handsome in that first pic. I LOVE that shirt!!

After JT's illness for a week, I'm coming down with what he had. Doesn't my body know that it cannot get sick?

 

[geri]

Hi everyone

I am finally popping into the NB thread now that our little girl Claudia is nearly 5 weeks old. I have tried a couple of times before but PS ate my posts and I didn't have the energy to type them again. I have read all the recent posts and will try to catch up properly soon but especially wanted to say hi to Houie, Bliss, LV and Noel - I can't believe we are all over here now!

I also have to say how cute all these little PS babies are!! Wow, they are a good looking bunch. Not wanting to single anyone out but LV
Samantha is divine!

Bliss, I completely agree with everything in your post. These first few weeks have been so much more relentless than I expected. Claudia has had feeding issues and can also be really hard to settle (took my mum 6 hours to get her to sleep yesterday - thank heavens for grandmothers!). She seems to have a problem with wind and sometimes just can't get comfortable so she doesn't want to lie down. But in between we have some great days which helps to maintain the sanity. Although I get frustrated sometimes, it is only because I sometimes don't know what to do to settle this helpless little bundle and it is so hard to see her in distress. Anyway, she is so sweet and adorable most of the time that the frustration fades pretty quickly. Here she is at just under 5 weeks.

 

[lucy.lucy.80]

just dropping by to say all your babies are absolutely adorable!!!! enjoy every second of it because they grow fast!!! I blinked and my little girl is 6 months already! wish you guys the best!

 

[Sha]

the new pics! Such cute babies!

 

[noelwr]

I'm also a sterilizer junkie. the bottles get sterilized after every use.

geri - Claudia is so sweet!

Allie - I can't believe how photogenic Charlie is (I've probably said that 100x now). funny expression in the first pic. I love the shirt.

LV - S looks like a cute little elf in that hat!

Lanie - the tie onesie is awesome.

and here's Skye's collage of this week, where she turned 12 weeks old.

 

[Puppmom]

Noel, S is too cute! My fav is that hat! Did your mom make that for her?

Geri, welcome! What a sweet face C has!

Allie, I always look forward to Charlie's pics. I could just eat him up!

LV, I wouldn't worry about the swing either. Whatever makes S happy! Just wait until she's a chunky 7 month old and the swing BARELY moves! ...and that picture is PERFECT.

Bliss, HBOTB was awesome! DH read it twice - he highlighted and everything. We used their swaddle diagram to become masters of swaddling. We referred to that book VERY often during the first few months.

Lanie, those pics of A are adorable. I love the little onesie with the tie! I hope your last week of leave was a good one.

Kunzite, I felt weird about pumping at work at first and now I could give a crap. I wash my pump parts in the sink while people are drinking their coffee. I walk past the same guys desk on my way to the Mother's Room every day too - we've become buddies. He says he can set his watch by me! Oh, and O is adorable. I love his face. N was a bottle slob too - he lived in a bib for a while.

Lynnie, what GORGEOUS pics of V! I'm glad to hear the girls are cooperating with the pumping schedule. I was so worried about that when I went back to work.

Icekid, - I hope things continue to get easier. You are a trooper.

AFM, N is sitting up pretty consistently now. When he decides he’s done he just throws himself back though. I guess crawling is next? He doesn’t look anywhere near ready for that! We’ve had a couple of nice days here recently so we’ve taken N to the playground. It’s so much fun watching him take in the world. He’s SO serious. DH and I went to therapy this week. It was OK – I was a little disappointed that we focused so much on how worked up I get when I’m stressed out and not at all on DH’s irritating habits but, hey, you can only accomplish so much in 45 minutes, right? Besides, I would like to be more laid back. I just don’t know if it’s possible. I might just be hardwired this way. I guess we’ll find out!

N is still very happy hanging out with Grandma every day. Soon they’re starting swim lessons – better her than me as you have to get in with them! Then, in May – they’ll start music class. She’s really looking forward to both. I hope that getting involved in these things will help socialize him because he’s definitely missing out on that since he doesn’t go to daycare yet.

…will post a pic soon. Wait till you guys see how big this kid is!

 

[turtledazzle]

Look what T did today! He's only 6.5 months!

The daycare teacher stood him up and apparently he stayed up holding on to the table for about 5 seconds. I'm so glad she got a pic.

Love everyone's great pics. Typing one-handed at the moment ...

 

[Kunzite]

Quick fly by picture post, happy Friday!

 

[Puppmom]

Turtle, T looks like a toddler in that picture!

Kunzite, what a looker you have!

Here's N - he's SEVEN months!

 

[somethingshiny]

Love all the pics! Nolan looks like he's running competition for cheekiest baby!

 

[Lynnie]

LV - yes, DH and I work opposite shifts, so he'll always be home with V while I'm working nights. A definite plus, as far as childcare issues go (no daycare!), but it'll be tough for me, I think. I worked out a set schedule with my boss, so I'll be working every Tues/Wed/Fri night (12 hr shifts), and then every third weekend. I have my mom every Wed, so I can sleep during the day, and DH will be home every Sat, so I can sleep then too. But every Thursday and on Mondays after my weekend I'll have to be up with the baby all day after working, so I'll nap when he does, but I know I'll be drained. And I'll be up all day on Tuesdays and Fridays with him, and have to be up all night those nights for work, too... We'll see how it works out. I may end up needing a sitter on Thursdays for a few hours if I find I'm too sleep deprived. But sleep deprivation just seems normal for me now, anyway Glad to hear it was just a mild cold. V is getting over one as well (more on that later). And ditto everyone on the swing. V is still in his a lot. I have the FP little lamb one, and it has a mirror directly over him, and he LOVES to look at himself and laugh! It's become our routine to wake up, come downstairs, and I stick him in the swing for a half hour/45 min while I make my coffee and toast, unload the dishwasher, etc. As far as playtime things... V didn't really seem 'entertainable' until he was about 2 1/2 months old. Once she figures out that her hands are attached to her body, it'll be easier to entertain her. I swear, for the first 2 1/2 months, all V seemed interested in were the walls and windows! He'd stare at them endlessly, and I was afraid he'd be this un-social little being!! But now he's grabbing at everything, so I like to introduce him to different textures - he loves to pet the cat! I LOVE LOVE your pro pic!! Samantha is absolutely beautiful!!! When do you have to go back to work?

Deelight - I can't wait to see you and your LO over here!! I LOVE your funny posts!!!!!!!!

Kunzite! I can't believe how big O is!! He is gorgeous! I remember when he was that tiny little thing!! Sorry your pumping schedule is a little off - I agree, they need to work around YOU! I start at 7pm, and I pump around midnight and again around 4am... I know there will be nights when that's not possible, though... I'm a nurse, and pumping and BFing are strongly encouraged where I work, so it's been great. Like Pupp, I wash my stuff in the sink in the breakroom, and no one really seems to care. I joke and I'll say "Got milk?? I do!" and I'll wave around my little bags of breastmilk before putting them in the freezer!

Bliss! How ya doin? I don't sterilize at all, except for the first use of things and if I slip and let a bottle sit all night. I usually just wash with really hot water and Dawn dishsoap after each use. About the perfume - OMG I'm with ya! My mom did it too! He reeked of her perfume one day, so I just told her to lay off it a bit, and she did.

Allie - Charlie is sooo cute!! Those eyes!! I have a bib with that saying on it! Too funny!

SS - sorry to hear you're under the weather. Tons of get-better dust to you!

Geri! Congratulations! Claudia is gorgeous, and I love her name!

Noel - Skye is beautiful!! Vincent sure has a lot of cute girls to look at!! lol

Pupp - LOVE N's pic!! Those cheeks are sooo squishable!!! I'm gonna have to look into some lessons when V is a bit older. Since we won't use daycare either, I really want him to be able to socialize somehow. Even if it's once or twice a week (preferably on the day I need to sleep!).

Turtle!! OMG, I can't believe T is STANDING like that!!! Sooo awesome! And he's so cute, to boot!

Icekid and Lanie - I still wanna be FB friends! I think PS has an old email for me, though... I'm off to update it!

AFM - So last weekend I started back to work, and the 3 of us came down with a cold. Monday morning V's nose was all crusty, and he had a low grade temp (99.. No wonder he was so cranky for DH while I was at work! The cold musta been brewing. He's much better now, but suctioning a baby's nose out is NO fun! My mom watched him Wed while I slept, and she had an absolute ball. His gassiness is better, but he still has bouts of it here and there. He sleeps well, usually. He typically falls asleep between 8 & 9pm, and he sleeps til 7 or 8am, waking to eat around 1 or 2. Sometimes he eats again at 4 or 5am, sometimes he'll just sleep til 7 before wanting to eat again.
I still have about 8 lbs to lose... my pre-preggo jeans are too tight. I can baaarely button them, but I've got major muffin top issues! Ugh... I can't wait til the weather warms up some so I can take him out in the stroller!
DH has decided to resume the basement renovation. The plan WAS to have it done by October, but that didn't happen... We demo'd it and installed recessed lights, but never got around to finishing it (putting up walls and drywall, etc). It's good that it's getting done, but I basically was on baby duty all weekend... which I LOVE, but would like a break sometimes!!! I love DH to death, but he still doesn't have the 'baby duty' thing down - I don't know if he's just not cut out for it or what. He's great with kids... but babies? Not so much I secretly wonder if he's keeping himself busy just to avoid baby duty. I know it's horrible to think that, but I can't help it! Not that I can really complain, it's not like he's out partying a la '16 and pregnant' style... OKAY OFF my soapbox!!! Baby pic time!

I just snapped these this morning. Check out his left eye in the closer-up one. His eyes are still a darkish grayish blue, except for that one splotch of brown. The spot's been there for well over a month, but the rest of his eyes haven't changed yet. I wonder what they'll end up being!

 

[Kunzite]

Lynnie, O has the exact same brown spot on his eye. Same place and everything!! I noticed it at the dr. a month ago and it's still the same size. I stare into his eyes every day to see if it got bigger hehe

 

[Mara]

love all the baby pics..!! seriously PS babies are so good lookin'.

 

[noelwr]

Skye is 3 months old today! on Sunday we took her to the swimming pool, which was great. today she had her 2nd shots. I think her little legs hurt (she's been sleeping, but wakes up screaming until I give her the pacifier) so will ask DH to stick in a paracetomol suppository when he gets home. poor girl, after the first needle I told her it was ok because it was done and then she got another needle in her other leg! mean old mommy.

she has 5 bottles a day and falls asleep on her own after the last one. at night, she sleeps on average 8 hrs straight. the dr said we can start trying to spoon feed her rice cereal. if she doesn't like it, then no worries. if she does take to it, then it can replace one bottle per day. something new and fun to try out!

Lynnie & Kunzite - did you ask the dr about the brown spot in the eye? just wondering if I can expect the same as I think Skye's eyes will turn brown eventually.

Lynnie - like you said, at least your DH is doing other stuff when he's not on baby duty, and not just sitting in front of the tv. I can't fit into any of my pre-preggo pants, yet. my MIL has kindly made the elastic part of my maternity pants smaller and lower. is V a redhead? he's got lovely lips.

puppmom - aw, N is so cute holding his toes! yes, my mom did knit the jacket and hat for Skye. btw, who doesn't get worked up when they get stressed out?

kunzite - is everything going much better now with O?

turtledazzle - wow, you must be so proud. at how many months did T start sitting up on his own?

 

[noelwr]

suppositories - love and hate them! I couldn't wait for DH to come home because S seemed so uncomfortable and screaming, so I inserted it. I thought How is this huge thing supposed to go into such a little hole???, but I put it in and an hour later she was "talking" and smiling again. no more screaming.

 

[Lanie]

Bliss -- glad you liked HBOTB. I've used the swaddle since day one and it really works for us to settle him down, especially during the power hour (7pm!) when he's fussy for no reason. Hope things are getting easier for you! You are so positive, I know you treasure this time, even if it's tough!

LV -- what a precious picture! She's so sweet and pretty! Play time has gotten better as Anderson has gotten older. I sing ALL THE TIME to him. Dumb things that include lyrics about everyday things like trying to find his pacifier. I read him a lot of books and as he's gotten older, he's so into them. I didn't think a baby that young would love to be read to so much. It will be easier as she gets older and more attentive. She's probably starting to focus on things, so just sticking bright or black and white objects in front of her will entertain her!

Allie -- Charlie is such a cutie! Hope the daycare stress is gone now.

SS -- hope you are feeling better. Everyone here in Houston is sick with some bad cough. So many of my kids are out of school!

geri -- Claudia is beautiful! What a sweet picture! I love the wave!!! Hope the sleeping is going better!

lucy.lucy -- thanks for popping in! Would love more updates!!!

noel -- LOVE the pictures of Skye! She looks like a little mushroom in that top right picture...adorable! I've never heard of those suppositories before....what are they for exactly? Like a pain reliver?

turtle -- what a happy, proud baby! What a moment to catch on camera!

Kunzite -- Oliver looks like he's just the sweetest baby. What a little doll.

pupp -- Owen is SO.CUTE. Little Michelin man arms! I love your updates so I know what is on deck.

Lynnie!!! Love the GQ pose! Let me know about FB.

I was going to post an AFM but duty calls....more later.

 

[Kunzite]

Ugh, I hate posting from my phone because I can't scroll through the posts and so I never remember what I wanted to say to everyone! Too bad it's all I have time for these days. Noel, thanks for asking how things are going... I have to say they are much better!! There must be some truth to the magic 6 week mark. O still screams for no reason a few times a day but it's not all the time any more and it's not WHILE he's eating any more. That alone has saved my sanity! He still gets pretty fussy in the evenings which stinks because that's the only time we get together. But yes, things are moving in the right direction.

Laine - are you back to work this week?

Shiny - are you feeling better?

<rant> lactose is in everything! </rant>

 

[noelwr]

Lanie - they are paracetamol suppositories, yes pain reliever. that's what we take in Holland instead of Tylenol. because she had her shots yesterday, the dr said to give it in case she cries more than normal because it means her thighs hurt where the needles went in. it also bring down fevers.

Kunzite - I think most babies have their fussy time in the evening. Skye always before her last bottle. I read babies cry the most between 6 to 12 weeks.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

So Aidan is 6 months old today. He's rolling all over the place, sitting unassisted when on my lap/tripoding on the floor, climbing out of his bouncy seat when he's done being in it and still not sleeping through the night. He's been on purees since 4 mo and we've just started giving him Ella's Kitchen pouches and he l...oves them. I want to start doing more table foods but I'm not really sure where to start. Should I puree what we're eating for dinner or should I give him chunks and do more of a BLW approach? Thoughts?

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Update from A's WBV this morning. He's 16 lbs and 25.25" long. He's in the 50th percentile for everything and is ahead of schedule for his gross motor skills (standing specifically). The pedi thinks some of his night time problems are a result of him sleeping too much during the day so we have to cut him back to 1 1 hr nap in the morning and 1 1 hr nap in the afternoon.

 

[AllieLuv83]

Yay A! Charlie is turning 5 months on Saturday and he is starting to sit unassisted on the floor, only for 10 seconds but I feel like its a start. He is so cute, laughing all the time and smiling. We are so blessed. I can't wait for the summer time to really enjoy this little guy without going to work!

 

[Puppmom]

Kunzite, babies sure do cry a lot early on. N was a pretty happy baby but he had the period at the end of the day when he was so fussy! It was really tough especially when I started work because he would be crying when I walked in the door and would be on edge basically until bed time. It gradually stopped. Now we still have to do a lot to keep the kid happy in the evenings but, hey, I'm grumpy after 6 too!

Lynnie, those are the cutest pics! V is adorable. Your schedule sounds grueling! Definitely get some help.

Lanie, N loves singing too! His fav is Itsy Bitsy Spider. He starts smiling as soon as I start singing it and I CAN NOT sing.

Noel, I'm so glad Skye likes swimming. N starts lessons next month with MIL. I think it'll be good for him.

HH, happy 6 months! No advice on solids because I'm a few steps behind you. N gags on anything with texture so we're still all purees. A stands? What the freak? I think I have the laziest kid on the planet! FWIW, I find that N actually sleeps BETTER at night if he's slept well during the day. But every kid needs a different amount of sleep and maybe A just needs less.

Allie, yay for sitting! It'll go from 10 seconds to minutes in no time. N didn't start sitting until about 6 months but, over just a few weeks, he became a pro. There are so many more ways to play with them when they're sitting.

AFM, N is starting a music/gym class next week with MIL. She took him yesterday for a preview and she said he was so shy. He cries when strangers talk to him. He could really use the socialization and I think this is the perfect age. Oh, and his new favorite activity is dancing with daddy to Queen - Don't Stop Me Now. He cannot wipe the grin off his face when DH dances with him.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Time for me to AW Aidan (though Charlie sitting unassisted at 5 mo is AW worthy too!). The only downside to an early stander is A has no idea how to fall without scaring the crap out of himself....

 

[turtledazzle]

Gosh, everyone's babies are so darn adorable!
HH -- I can't believe A is standing. Amazing! You're also ahead of us on the food game. We're still doing purees, though I'm doing them a bit thicker now. I'm not sure how to approach the next steps so I'll be interested to see what you do.

T is also a little fussy in the evenings. With him, I think he gets a little over tired as he has never taken long naps. For a few months there he was guaranteed to cry at bedtime (usually between bath and getting a diaper). He's mostly over that now but still has his crabby evenings here and there.

 

[somethingshiny]

After some really miserable days and nights, Lily is feeling better. Poor baby was running over 102 for days. When I took her to the dr he looked at her throat and said it must be really painful. JT was a bit older than Lily when he started with the tonsillitis so I really hope Lily isn't following that path. DH has been home for the last 3 days with the sickness now.

Lily is still only flipping from tummy to back, never the other way and has not yet rolled. She's looking slimmer these days so hopefully she'll be able to get some momentum on her chunky butt. She loves sitting and playing and is always busy. JT was never a busy baby so it's new for us. She seems like she's teething but hasn't cut any yet. It still amazes me at how different babies are from one another. By the time JT was 7+ months, he was eating 3 meals a day, a bedtime bottle and sometimes a snack. Lily is still mostly on a bottle and doesn't want much to do with solids.

I had my annual dr appt today and will be getting the Mirena in a couple weeks. I'll make sure to report on it here!!

 

[Bliss]

Hey ladies! Just popping in to share info on something truly LOVELY that happened to me lately.

CLOGGED DUCTS/CAKED BREAST/MASTITIS PSA

CLOGGED DUCTS! Oh, the feeling of oversupply is just glorious. I love having too much milk and thus getting nature's gift of clogged ducts. Let me tell you...the way they make your boobs feel like a bag of giant rocks is so much fun. It's better than Monopoly!

NOT!!!! Yeah, it was the most painful thing ever! After I scoured the web for cures both conventional and non-conventional, consulted 2 docs and tried everything under the sun - one hellacious day later, it's gone. For good. So in case any of you get this horrific condition, I'd love to share what worked and didn't work for me. It is really alarming when it happens and really painful so I wanted to reassure you that with proper care, you can keep mastitis at bay. That was my greatest fear: having to be hospitalized to drain an infected cyst in my breast! So if you rest rest rest and follow proper care, you can make it disappear very quickly. Hopefully! Here's what worked and didn't work for me!

Cures I looked up for clogged ducts/caked breast. This happens after engorgement sometimes so please be aware!

1. Lecithin supplements - 1200 mg four times a day. It can be derived from soy, sunflower or egg sources. It apparently helps thin the breast milk to avoid clogs. Found in most processed foods and used as an emulsifier. Safe for breastfeeding according to most doctors. Talk to your doctor first!

2. Evening Primrose Oil - 500 mg daily. Helps with inflammation. Again, talk to your doctor first!

3. THIS WORKS! Use a wide toothed plastic comb with soft or balled tips and "comb" down the breast toward the nipple with firm strokes. When I read this "cure" I laughed. But in desperation, I did it as the final straw and surprisingly it worked IMMEDIATELY. I felt SO much better. I saw the hard lumps disappear before my eyes. This is after fruitless massaging (painful!) for hours. It works better than massage and I have NO idea why. Women swear it works and it is TRUE! You just do it for a few seconds and it somehow gently releases the lumps. I had HUGE hard lumps and it totally made them melt away. Insanity. I have no idea how this works over plain massage. Magic.

4. Vitamin C - I took extra to fight possibility of infection. I did NOT want to get mastitis and have to get a cyst drained in the hospital. Talk to your doctor first!

5. Warm and cold compresses. Warm before nursing to help the milk flow better and cool between feedings.

6. Cabbage leaves in the bra. I didn't find this to be effective, personally. To me, the comb cured everything after trying this entire list of "remedies." I religiously used these and besides the cooling effect, did not notice dramatic relief like I did with the comb. I know, the comb thing struck me as silly and weird...until I tried it.

7. Nursing on all fours dangling boob over baby. I read that this works due to gravity - and I tried it. Was awkward and didn't help me personally. Was difficult to execute and M didn't appreciate it too much!

8. Nurse pointing the baby's chin toward the clog. This didn't really work for me either.

9. Nurse as much as possible. This definitely helped!!! The pump is not as effective as the baby in really draining the breast.

10. Watch your diet - cut down on high fat foods. I don't eat high fat foods so this didn't really affect me.

11. REST - very important! I read that this happens to a lot of women around 6 weeks after giving birth because that's when many new moms think they can resume full activity. And they overdo it. Then they get a clogged duct or mastitis because their immune systems crash... stress and fatigue are definite contributors so REST UP! Yes, hard to do with a newborn. We flew MIL up for another 2 weeks the very next day so I could get a break and rest again.

12. I called my OB for antibiotics just in case. It gave me peace of mind to know that if the clogged duct turned into mastitis, I had them ready. The last thing I wanted was an infection because I did NOT want to be hospitalized!!!! I would get them and have them handy because if it suddenly gets infected at 3am, it's tough to wrangle antibiotics by then.

I just wanted to share because this was such a traumatic and painful experience! I hope no one has to go through it and if you do get unlucky due to oversupply, I hope this helps you out!!!

 

[Puppmom]

Thanks for the PSA, Bliss. I was MISERABLE when I had a clogged duct. I was in bed with a fever for 2 days and CRIED every time DH brought N to me to nurse. I'm glad you've found something that works and I'll be bookmarking this page for future reference. Hopefully, I never need it.


...so MIL skipped N's afternoon nap yesterday because he had the hiccups. Needless to say he was impossible all evening and woke overnight.